Outdoor Encounters

by Harry Salmgren

Essentially fly casting is a very enjoyable and pleasant exercise and ought not to be made more complicated than it really is.

First, think of your rod as a pendulum in the air which -when moved- will produce line speed.

Second, it is up to you to decide to throw the line into a controlled loop by halting the rod so that the line can straighten out.

Third, the loops are formed by the pause of the fly rod between strokes.

-Practice-

Take a comfortable stance with two rod-lengths of fly line extended behind you on the ground. Hold the rod grip comfortably with a ”tennis”grip. Bringing the rod tip forward in an accelerated motion will give the line enough speed to form a loop when you stop the rod tip in a forward position. You decide how you want to form a loop and by trying to narrow the loop you will develop more control over the process. By getting familiar with the motion and by concentrating on forming a narrower loop your casting will improve.. Think narrow loop and you’ll get there!

After learning to throw a loop in front you can progress by learning to throw an equivalent loop behind you by casting backwards.

With practice you can learn to cast effortlessly while casting forward and casting backward.

>B?-Casting sideways-

Later you’ll want more control, and this will come by casting sideways, parallel to the ground in front of you, thereby letting the rod and loop move to the left and to the right of you, back and forth. This practice also gives you an insight into the dynamics of a well performed cast. You realize that you sometimes need something similar to a -racket swing- and sometimes a -hammer swing- to exactly form the desired loop you are concentrating on. There is no need of specified casting arcs by the clock as between 11:00-14:00 or whatever. You can now grow into using longer strokes when called for, or shorter when those are needed. Because that’s fishing practice.

At the actual fishing site you constantly need to adjust for wind, weather, distance and types of flies used. The casting motion to form the loop you concentrate on will also depend on the rod and line combination at hand.

Narrowing it down

These factors mentioned, all have a bearing on your casting arc or motion. The loop is essential. To form it is the goal, and to think ”make it narrow” will bring the rest of the fly line into a straight cast when performed.

-Ah, if it was possible to start all over again. To whip the loop forward for the first time. To see it throw the tailing line into a straightforward halt and to gradually become able to duplicate the motion -back and forward- with the mind concentrated on forming a still narrower loop. Well yes, the familiar movements luckily bring all this back again, over and over, always when casting. What a joy!

See you on the waters,

Harry

There is definitely a misconception that saltwater flyfishing for Coho, or any salmon for that matter, is non existent! Well much like the moment you buy a computer it becomes obsolete, the idea that flyfishing in the open ocean is not as exciting or productive as freshwater fishing for salmon or trout, is also a thing of the past.

A number of professional anglers and guides have been practicing these saltwater techniques for years, just fine tuning their efforts until the right time to expose the right ones at the right times! Well it’s time! Guides and Charters are now available for excursions that allow for fishing Coho on the fly.

The ocean flyfishing movement started with wet lines and sinking or weighted patterns but much like the popularity of the sport, has evolved into something much bigger and better and seems to “float to the top” of every magazine or article that relates to fishing for salmon or steelhead. Well maybe the line isn’t always floating, but compared to the fast sinking lines and Clouser minnows of yesteryear, methods have changed into a slower sinking line or sometimes a completely floating line with “jumping and hopping” topwater movements.

As with any change, comes more change! With new developments in the success of topwater or surface flyfishing for Coho and a bucket full of nothing but new ideas, the same old flies needed adjustment to keep up with the technique altering. Experimentation was needed in order to harness the new style of Coho fishing on the fly.

“Oh Where Oh Where Did My Loadie Doe Coho Go?”

Locating Coho in the river is one thing! Try finding these silver buggers in their open marine environment! It’s definitely tricky and without the proper tackle and gear, it can be what my brother always called a“WOT” or waste of time, sometimes “WOFT.” If it’s one thing to keep in mind, it’s that in the summer before the fish move to the rivers to spawn, they want one thing and one thing only…food! If you can find the kelp beds that they are moving in and around this will help you find fish.

Coho look for these kelp beds in search of herring that move to these beds for cover and safety. The herring that the Coho are after will be in the top 30 percent of water depending on how deep it is. Now the thing to watch for in these beds is wounded or ill herring that struggle along the surface in a circular motion and make a tiny little wake behind them in the shape of a “V.” These are good signs for the Coho fisherman that’s looking for these salmon because the Coho love to buzz across these kelp lines looking for the struggling “V.” There’s nothing better than finding the Coho as they circle the herring like a pack of sharks ready to kill, as they splash, jump and fight aggressively over their next meal.

The kelp acts as a great way for the herring to hide or find protection against Coho and other salmon looking to fatten up and the Coho seem to know it. Much like in a river system where a Steelhead will sit behind a rock or log jamb for the current to push an earthworm right in front of him, the Coho can sometimes be found while sitting along the line of a kelp bed waiting for an un-suspecting herring to be pulled out into the open by the tide before getting smashed by half a dozen Coho.

Being prepared for the fight

Just like you should get all your ducks in a row before heading out on the river for an early first light Coho fish, you need to make sure you’re prepared for what’s in store on the ocean…even more so with the danger of the ocean. Have all of your spey fishing tackle cleaned, ready to go and organized so you don’t miss anything, cuz it’s a long trip back for a couple of 5 dollar flies!

Assuming you are someone experienced on the waters or with someone who knows how to navigate the ocean with lots of respect, there are a couple of things that you will need to do once you have found the Coho kelp beds with “rising” Coho on the perimeter. These are the steps that I would suggest you take before throwing a line into the water. Remember that once you’ve found Coho feeding, if you’ve taken all of these steps and followed them to a tee, you’ll be surprised at how quickly a couple of quick strips back with your fly after you’ve casted, it will take for your fly to be absolutely attacked by an aggressive Coho.

Observe - look for rising fish and guestimate the underwater kelp environment.

Observe Wind – position yourself correctly against the wind.

Observe Current – position yourself correctly against the current.

Stealth – be quiet! Be stealthy and try not to hit the boat with anything.

Anchor – anchor yourself in the correct position quietly, taking into consideration all of the things that you have watched such as fish, wind and currents.

Observe Fish – watch patiently for rising or jumping fish either herring OR Coho.

Fly – after choosing the right coho fly make sure to have your fly rod and reel ready to go for the next jumper.

Fish On!!!

When fishing Coho on the fly there are a couple of things out of the norm from fishing in a river or downrigging. One technique that is recommended when fishing Coho like mentioned above is once a fish is on, or thought to be on, you should always give the line a couple more strips before the set. Often the fish will attack the fly in increasingly strong waves of aggression. If you set the hook to soon you are apt to pull the hook away from the feed and miss the fish – a couple of quick strips back after a nibble will ensure that the fish keeps attacking the line until they literally hook themselves.

http://www.gosalmonfishing.com
http://www.rifles-n-rods.com

Have you ever caught a Coho or Steelhead on a fly rod? Well if you are one of the lucky or skilled anglers out there who has, then you can stock up your fly box with these killer flies, or you can keep reading and find out what flies you should look for when you are going to hit the Ocean with your Spey rod, or if it’s Freshwater, with your Centerpin! Visit these sites to buy some great flies:

http://www.gosalmonfishing.com/flyfishing-for-salmon.php
http://www.rifles-n-rods.com
Most fishermen go for Salmon with bait, lures or plugs and such, but there is a few anglers - usually more experienced or tired of the same techniques - who switch it up and change their tactics to that of a fly fisherman. In the next few paragraphs we’ll discuss what exactly entails fishing for salmon with flies and what you’ll need.
If it’s salmon that you are targetting, you have to understand a few basic concepts before you go and buy anything. First of all, most salmon don’t actually bite flies! For example; Chinook, otherwise known as King salmon, that are spawning in rivers seldom take bait because they are feeding or hungry. These salmon bite in freshwater rivers because they are very territorial or aggrivated by your lure. Sometimes they are also caught by a technique reffered to as “flossing” (which some anglers don’t like because it can be viewed as having no skill or simply snagging the fish in the mouth as the hook drifts down the river). One of the only species of salmon to actually aggressively bite a fly would be Steelhead or Coho Salmon.
Another thing you’ll want to consider is size of hook. Depending on species and water body you will have a few options - the obviouse one being size, which depends on how big the fish you are targetting are possibly going to be, and what type of water system you are fishing them in - Saltwater or Freshwater. You will also want a fly that will resemble the insects, fish or other animals that are in the surrounding environment, so it’s convincing to the fish.
One thing that allot of anglers forget is the weight of their line. The weight of the your line and the size of your hook (which translates to hook weight as well), transversly effects how effective your cast will be. If your hook is heavier than your line or visa versa, you will be “whipping” your fly and can expect allot of tangled leader material or lost flies.
Here is a quick tip: divide the hook size of your fly by “3″ and that is a suitable “X” rating to use in tippet selection. As an example, a size 6 hook divided by “3″ would equal “2″ or 2X tippet. This is a guideline meant to assure adequate presentation and turnover, but don’t live and die by this formula, as a good fisherman ALWAYS improvises and changes.
Hook size chart:

Steelhead Salmon are very popular to catch on a fly rod because of their size and aggresive nature. Having a major population of fish being caught in coastal river systems or in the interior Great Lakes of Canada and USA, they have been extremely accessable and as a result are on a threatening decline in population due to low cost of fishing for their particular species, as well as popularity.
Steelies are arguably one of the most acrobatic and hardest fighting fish - pound for pound - that there is and being able to persue them on a fly rod that allows for a more sensative feel to the rod and a reel action that will give any novice angler a “jammer.” A rule that a lot of “steelheads” have kept in mind is “Bright Day = Bright Fly, Dark Day = Dark Fly.” That’s just one of many rules to follow when choosing the right Steelhead fly.
Most Summer Steelheaders are going for the “summer run” and are fishing low light in the early morning or late evening and dark patterns like the Green Butt Skunk or Freight Train are good because of their brightness. Other popular flies for summer are the Purple Peril, Streetwalker, and the Skykomish Sunrise. You’ll want to choose less vibrantly colored flies for lower, clearer water as to not spook any fish.
As early fall approaches and rivers are getting muddy due to run-off, bold and bright flies like the Marabou fly, is a good choice of bug. If it’s the mighty winter Steelhead you are in pursuit of, try a fly pattern like the Bunny Leeche, Marabou Flie or Egg Sucking Leeche. These patterns with flash and/or silver added or egg patterns, and patterns with reds, oranges, yellows, and bright purples have proven very successful for “steel-stalkers.” If all else fails, go back to the basic blacks and whites.
Steelhead will often nail a black bunny leech, marabou leech, or wooly bugger, when nothing else will work, although they aren’t as picky as other salmon and it’s a lot easier to pick a Steely fly than it is choosing the right coho fly.

http://www.gosalmonfishing.com/flyfishing-for-salmon.php
http://www.rifles-n-rods.com]]>